Rain
by Cherry Top
Summary: SaiSaku. Sai and Sakura are sent to a distant country on a mission while Naruto is off again training. As the near year-long mission filled with magic and mystery plays out, they discover an all-too-familiar plot to rule the world. Harry Potter X-over
1. Prologue

A/N: Hello! I've always enjoyed reading Harry Potter x Naruto crossovers and I've also recently fallen in love with the couple SaiSaku, so I though to bring my love of both together in this fanfic here. This is AU past Itachi's death (cries holding Itachi plushie) and GoF. This is just the prologue so far, but I hope you like it!

Sai, to me is a difficult character to write, but I will try my best to not make him too out of character.

DISCLAIMER: Naruto and characters all belong to Masashi Kishimoto

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Rain

Prologue

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Haruno Sakura stood patiently outside the Hokage's office as she waited for Tsunade to be ready for her. She cast a short glance to her left at Sai who stood impassively by her side. They had both been training together with Kakashi when a Chuunin arrived with a request to see the Hokage for the both of them. It was odd that Kakashi was not called as well, and to be quite honest Sakura felt a touch uncomfortable being left alone with Sai.

She didn't have anything against him, and he really tried, but he still was very lacking in the social department; every other sentence that came out of his mouth made Sakura want to punch him all the way to Suna. Sakura looked at him again and noticed a few miniscule changes in him since they had first met. He was less pale, but certainly not tanned. They had learned early on that he only burned. He seemed much more relaxed than before when he was always tensed, ready for attack. He felt her eyes on him and looked up smiling at her. Most of his smiles were as fake as ever, but some were genuine, this one seemed to be a cross between the two; true, but slightly uncomfortable.

"Is there something wrong, hag?" He asked, smile never faltering.

Inner Sakura raged while a twitch came to her brow. She willed herself to ignore it and answer him steadily.

"No, I'm just wondering when Tsunade-shishou will call us in," Sakura said.

"Aa," Sai said, smile falling, "We have been waiting quite a while now."

A crash sounded from inside the room and Sakura and Sai exchanged uneasy glances. Even Sai knew not to cross Tsunade in such a mood. Shizune cracked the door open and poked her head out, her hair was slightly ruffled, but she was no worse for wear than that; a good sign that Tsunade wasn't taking out anger on innocent bystanders. Shouting sounded from inside and Shizune winced.

"If you think I'm going to send you two highly ranked shinobi for any less than-!"

"Now, my dear, we can surely work out a reasonable compromise…"

Shizune looked back inside nervously as the voices grew quieter.

"Eto…" She began, "Tsunade-sama will see you now."

She slipped back into the room, leaving the door open and Sakura and Sai swiftly made their way inside. Tsunade sat behind her desk with one hand at her temple and a bottle of sake in the other. Shizune went up next to her and attempted to get her hands on the sake bottle but was thwarted repeatedly in her attempts. These were both normal things to see. What brought quizzical looks to both Sakura and Sai's faces was the man standing in front of the desk with his back to them. From what they saw he had very long grey hair and wore long purple robes and a matching pointed hat. He turned his head and caught sight of them. Sai and Sakura straightened their posture, crossing their arms behind their backs, and removed expression from their faces, leaving only the mask of a perfect shinobi for him to see. It seemed that the old man's beard was as long as the rest of his hair and was tucked into his belt. He had a pair of half-moon glasses over which looked a pair of twinkling blue eyes. They were oddly reminiscent of Naruto's own cobalt eyes and Sakura was hit with a twang of hurt.

He had left her behind again to go off training. Sakura understood, really. After their recent failure to retrieve Sasuke, Naruto once more felt inadequate and pained. Sakura could relate to the feeling well. Sakura's expression turned stony; no matter how strong she got, no matter what she could do, she would always be miles behind her boys. She had accepted this, but it still hurt and it still made her feel weak and useless. Since Naruto left, Kakashi started training with her and Sai after she had asked them to help prepare her for the Jounin exam. Kakashi was pleased to say the least and leapt immediately into grueling training with her. Sakura realized that he was trying to make up his neglect of her in earlier years, and felt a twist in her heart at the thought. With Kakashi and Sai's help Sakura was able to pass the Jounin exam within two months since Naruto had left.

Sakura was broken from her thoughts when Tsunade spoke up.

"Sakura, Sai," She said glancing over at them briefly before returning her gaze to the elderly man in the room, "Meet Albus Dumbledore, your employer for the next ten months."

Shock coursed through Sakura; ten months? Sai voiced her concerns.

"Ten months, Hokage-sama? There are still…" Sai hesitated, eyes shifting to the man for a moment, "certain matters here that have not been resolved, is it truly prudent to send the two of us on such a long mission?"

Tsunade twitched at the challenge of her authority. The boy was quickly falling into the mold of a member of Team Kakashi.

"Yes, ten months," She said crisply, "We expect a rather lengthy lull in… certain activities of certain people, and I don't expect Naruto's return any time very soon."

Still a little uneasy, Sai and Sakura nodded, not wanting to challenge her further. It was true, though, the Akatsuki had lost yet another member; with their numbers dwindling quickly, it may be a while before they recover.

"Perhaps, Dumbledore-san, it would be best if you explained the mission," Tsunade said tersely. It seemed she was still unhappy with whatever compromise had to be made.

"Of course, Hokage-sama," He spoke their language flawlessly; though there was a distinct lilt that neither Sakura nor Sai could quite place. He turned to the two of them, speaking in an amiable tone, "What I request of you is this. I am Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry" – a short, disbelieving glance between Sakura and Sai – "and I request protection for my students against a powerful dark wizard, most especially a certain student named Harry Potter. Our own government, the Ministry of Magic, has refused to acknowledge the rise of this wizard and I fear that my students are in danger for their ignorance."

A flash of anger crossed his face.

"Excuse me… Dumbledore-san," Sakura started, "But… Witchcraft and Wizardry?"

The older man chuckled, "Merely a different way of harnessing what you call chakra. Where I am from… chakra coils are not as fully developed so we use the help of what is called a wand to channel the energy into what we call spells. Most people though, have very poorly developed chakra coils and are unable to use their chakra."

"Civilians," Sai supplied.

"Muggles," Dumbledore said, "Not all of them are civilians, and they have their own strengths and armies. But no, they are not a part of the magical society, in fact they have no idea that it exists."

"So… this dark wizard," Sakura said, bringing them back to the topic of the mission, "What should we expect from him?"

"I do not know quite what he will try this year, as it seems to vary from year to year," Dumbledore said with a slight grimace, "But you will need to constantly be on your guard. I am also quite worried about the lengths to which the Ministry will go attempt to keep people from believing that Voldemort has indeed returned. They must not know that I have hired extra protection for my school and therefore you must be undercover as transfer students."

"Returned?" Sakura asked.

"A long story that is perhaps best for the journey to England," Dumbledore said, "All will be explained. Your language and customs are extremely similar to that of the country Japan, and therefore that is where we shall say you are from. Hokage-sama?"

He nodded to Tsunade and she took a swig from her bottle of sake, earning a disapproving glare from Shizune.

"This is classified as an S-Rank mission, but I trust the two of you to make sure it goes without a hitch. The fact that this is undercover is the reason that Kakashi will not be joining you. Although I am sure he could keep up a henge for quite a long time, not even he can do that in his sleep, not to mention holding it for so long would create problems with chakra depletion."

"Ah yes," Dumbledore interrupted, "It seems that the two of you could easily pass for students at my school, but perhaps I could have your ages?"

"Fifteen, sir," Sakura said, "Soon to be sixteen."

"Seventeen," Sai replied as well, "How could we possibly 'easily' pass for academy students? We do not look twelve."

Dumbledore seemed a bit shocked.

"I thought you simply looked… but… you are truly that young? I suppose as a foreigner I have no place to judge your lifestyle, so I will simply express my surprise that you are so young. And you are in fact the perfect age for our school. Generally ages range from our first years at about eleven to our seventh years at seventeen or eighteen. I suppose I could pass you both off as fifth years, to keep you close to Mr. Potter, who is currently in his fifth year."

"Moving on," Tsunade said, waving her hand, "Again, you will be gone for ten months in a distant country. Neither of you are exactly in charge of this mission, you are equals in this. You are to send progress reports at the end of each month. Dumbledore-san will help you with how to do so. Now then you are to pack your regular mission supplies and some civilian clothes, if you have none" – a pointed look at Sai – "Purchase some. You have a very loose budget for the mission; Dumbledore-san is paying for everything you require. The rest of what you need will be bought once you arrive at your initial destination; these are things that will be required for you fit your covers. Any questions?"

She was met with silence and then nodded to the pair.

"Good, then you are dismissed, you are to meet back here tonight at eight sharp," Tsunade said, straightening her back, stretching her arms above her head with a yawn. Shizune took the opportunity and snatched the bottle of sake from her hand and ran, Ton-Ton squealing in her arms.

Tsunade's expression darkened and she looked at her now empty hand for a moment before snapping at Sai and Sakura.

"What are you two still doing here? Scram!"

Unwilling to risk her wrath, in an instant Sakura and Sai were walking down the path just outside of the Hokage Tower. Sakura's brow furrowed in thought.

"This is going to be an… interesting mission," She said looking over at Sai.

He favored her with a smile and then slight nervousness crept into his expression.

"Hey, hag, where could I buy some civilian clothes?" He asked.

Sakura laughed lightly and took hold of his wrist beginning to pull him along behind her.

"Come on, let's go find Ino."

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Reviews are love!


	2. Chapter One

A/N: Hello! I would first like to thank everyone who reviewed, I'm really glad that you like it so far. The first couple of chapters might be a bit slow, but bear with me I'm just getting it started. It'll be a bit more interesting once they get to Hogwarts and this romance heats up XD.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or it's characters, or Harry Potter and it's characters.

From now on:

_Not English_

English

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Rain

Chapter One

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It was nauseating and dizzying and left her completely disoriented, which was decidedly Not a Good Thing for a Shinobi to Be. She never wanted to have to take a portkey again so long as she lived. They had just taken five of them in a row to be precise, the old man chattering on as they went from one to the other about this and that. Sakura trusted Sai to absorb all the information as she was preoccupied with keeping the contents of her stomach from spilling forth. Sai was a bit dizzied, but otherwise unaffected by the method of travel.

Lucky bastard.

Sakura felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see Sai staring down at her with a flicker of concern. Sakura's heart lightened at the expression of emotion and she smiled brightly at him. Sai smiled back and Sakura straightened herself, taking a deep, soothing breath.

_"It is a tad disconcerting the first few times," _Dumbledore said, _"But you get used to it after a while."_

Sakura finally took in their surroundings, it seemed that they had appeared in a dark alley and Sakura immediately tensed, attempting to sense out any sort of danger. The only thing she could feel was a concentration of non-malicious chakra just a short ways away, as if there were a genjutsu in place there. Sakura relaxed, in part due to the reassuring hand that was still firm on her shoulder.

_"Now, before we move on, there is one thing that will need to be addressed," _Dumbledore said, _"The issue of the language barrier – worry not I have a solution."_

Dumbledore reached into a pocket of his robes and pulled out two necklaces, simple silver chains.

_"These are charmed to grant you knowledge of the English language so long as you wear them,"_ The elderly wizard said, _"They have a few protection charms on them as well, but still be careful with them, were they to break or be lost, it would take a bit of time and effort to make new ones. Of course, as they simply give you knowledge of the language, you may still speak in your native tongue should you so choose."_

Dumbledore held the chains out to them and each Sakura and Sai took one. A bit hesitantly Sakura put hers on first and the air was knocked out of her as her mind was assaulted with a barrage of information.

"Thank you," Sakura said in heavily accented, halting English, "This is… odd… that I suddenly know an entire new language. The way you use chakra… is incredible Dumbledore-sensei."

Assured of the safety, Sai put his on as well, suffering the same gut-punch effect that Sakura did. Dumbledore smiled in satisfaction and turned away, gesturing for them to follow him out of the Alleyway. Sai dropped his hand from Sakura's shoulder as they were led into the street. The sidewalks were not extremely busy, but those who walked down them would gawk at Dumbledore openly. Sakura received a few strange looks; likely due to the color of her hair, but other than that she and Sai, after a successful excursion to several clothing stores with Ino, looked relatively normal.

Ino had been merciless with Sai, and he ended up with far more outfits than he really needed, but that's just Ino. Ino dragged them from store to store, shoving Sai into dressing rooms with a wide range of clothing, some just downright ridiculous. It was a good thing that she convinced Ino that no, he would not be needing a fishnet shirt with baggy black shorts and black and silver choker necklace and short black gloves, and neither would he be needing those black cowboy boots and skinny leather pants. Eventually – and with a pout – Ino settled for just getting him several t-shirts and collared shirts that looked good on him and some jeans and khakis. Sakura had been forced into buying a few tops and jeans, but other than that she deflected Ino's attempts at forcing fashion upon her by already having some civilian clothes.

Sakura was broken from her reminiscing by Dumbledore speaking.

"We will be heading to Diagon Alley, where you shall be purchasing your school supplies," He said as they made their way towards where Sakura had felt the gathering of chakra, a rundown pub with a sign that said "Leaky Cauldron," "I'll be leaving you with my good friend Remus Lupin when we arrive, as I should be returning to the school."

"Yes, sir," Sai responded, testing his English for the first time. It felt strange that the words so easily fell from his lips, but did not acknowledge it, "Have you a list of what we will need?"

"Ah!" Dumbledore said as he opened the door to the Leaky Cauldron and ushered them inside, "Yes, yes I do… somewhere."

Dumbledore began patting all his pockets and Sakura and Sai surveyed their new surroundings. It was as shoddy inside as it had been outside. The bartender himself looked like something out of a bad horror film, but also looked to be friendly enough. Most of the patrons began immediate whispering amongst themselves at their entrance, but a few smiled and waved at the Headmaster of Hogwarts. One man who had been sitting alone at a table dropped some coins on the table and stood up, walking over to them. He had russet brown hair with a few streaks of grey in it, and his face was very tired, though he seemed to be very young. Yet, knowing Kakashi, their twenty-nine year old, grey-haired – excuse me, silver-haired – sensei the strands of grey hair were really nothing. They seemed to be here, however, signs of stress.

Dumbledore finally pulled out a piece of paper with a short "Ahah!" The man with the brown hair came up to them and shook hands with Dumbledore, smiling slightly.

"Ah, Remus!" Dumbledore greeted, "Thank you again for doing this for me. Are you alright? You look a bit pale."

"Yes, yes, quite alright Albus," He said, eyes shifting nervously to Sakura and Sai, "It is simply nearing that time of the month again."

Sai's brow creased and he opened his mouth. Sakura's face met her palm as she knew he was about to say something very, very wrong.

"That time of the month?" Sai asked, Sakura cringed, "I thought that was a woman's thing. Are you a woman, Lupin-san?"

Sai opened his mouth again as Remus and the Headmaster looked at the boy in pure shock and Sakura quickly slapped her hand over his mouth, patting his should looking at the struck pair with a sheepish laugh.

"Don't mind him!" She said quickly, "He doesn't know any better!"

Sai took hold of her wrist and struggled to pull it away from his mouth.

"I am simply curious, Hag," he said, "Your 'time of the month' is what Naruto calls it when you are hitting us even more than normal. He said it was a 'woman's thing'. I was simply wondering if Lupin-san here was-"

Sakura saw red and raised her fists, punching Sai repeatedly in the arm, chest and face, fully aware that she would likely be required to heal it later. She grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and started shaking him violently.

_"You stupid, emotionless, insensitive bastard!" _She screamed. The establishment's patrons looked on with worry and amusement.

"Haruno-san!" Dumbledore said, putting a hand on her shoulder. Sakura stopped, breathing heavily, and looked over at the Headmaster with murder in her eyes. He put up his hands in a sign of innocence and looked pointedly at Sai. Sakura followed his gaze and saw Sai, bruised and a little bloody, smiling up at her, even through his busted lip. Sakura let go of him and he stumbled back a bit.

_"Why'd you let me keep hitting you?" _She asked, walking towards him, the old wizard's hand falling from her shoulder and taking his chin in her hand, inspecting the damage to his face.

_"You would have only gotten angrier had I dodged," _He said, smiling, _"It seems that curiosity is, indeed, a dangerous thing."_

Sakura huffed and put her hand on his busted lower lip, brushing over it lightly.

"I'm sorry for causing a scene, Dumbledore-sensei," She said, eyes flickering to him, "Sometimes my anger gets the best of me."

"That's… alright, Haruno-san," Dumbledore said as the people in the pub turned their attention away from the strange group, a hint of amusement in his eyes, "I have a feeling that this will be the most interesting school year yet."

Sakura smiled nervously at him as he bid them farewell, handing the list to Remus, walking over to the fireplace and taking a pinch of powder from the jar on the mantle, throwing it in and yelling "Hogwarts!" He disappeared in a flurry of green flames and Sakura turned her attention to the brown haired man that was frowning and looking at Sai without pity.

"Eto…" Sakura said, nervously through the tension, "Might we get going? I am sorry about Sai" – Sakura shoots a glare at the artist, who merely smiles back at her – "It's a… long story, but to make it short… just try not to be offended by anything he says."

Remus turned his attention to Sakura and with a small smile nodded.

"Ah, yes, of course," He said, eyes flickering to Sai for a second before returning to the pink haired kunoichi, "Sakura, yes?"

"That's right," Sakura replied with a smile as Remus gestured for them to follow him out what seemed to be a back door, "Sakura Haruno" – the automatic swapping of surname and personal name shocked her a bit, the charm would take some getting used to – "And this is Sai."

"Yes," Remus said with a short grimace as he led them out into a back alley. They were directly on the spot where the gathering of chakra that she had sensed was, the brick wall in front of them practically pulsed with energy. Sakura walked up to the wall and placed a hand on it, brow furrowing.

"Miss Haruno, allow me-" Remus grasped her shoulder as with her other hand she formed the tiger seal.

"Kai!" She sent a burst of energy into her surroundings willing gathering of chakra to disperse. Sakura stepped back as the wall before her began to shift, the bricks rearranging themselves. Remus looked on with shock. Sakura looked on in amazement as the bustling streets of Diagon Alley revealed themselves.

"Sugoi!" Sakura exclaimed stepping towards the street when she felt a tug at the hem of her shirt. She turned to see Sai looking at her, one hand touching a purpling bruise on his face, wincing a little, "Ha-…Sakura-san, could you perhaps…"

"Oh!" Sakura said and pulled him over so that those out on the street could not see them. She gathered healing chakra in her hand and placed it gently against his lip first. Remus seemed to shake himself out of his stupor.

"How did you do that?" He asked incredulously, "You didn't even use a wand, or do the proper movements…"

"I released the illusion by sending a burst of chakra into my surroundings, dispersing the gathering of chakra that formed the illusion," Sakura said, brow furrowing in concentration as she moved from Sai's lip to his darkening eye.

"That's incredible," Remus said, shaking his head.

Sai flinched as she pressed a bit too hard against a bruise.

"Sorry," she mumbled, finishing off the healing of his face. She looked up at him, their eyes meeting and she realized how close she had brought her face to his. He looked back at her impassively as she blushed. She didn't realize how long she just stood there looking at him until she heard Remus clear his throat from behind her and she stepped away, and glanced over at him, seeing him shift nervously and looking distinctly uncomfortable.

"Eh?" Sakura said in confusion, then realizing what he must have been seeing, her blush deepened, "Eh? No, no, no! It's not… I mean…"

Sakura took another step back from Sai, laughing nervously, rubbing the back of her neck in a decidedly Naruto fashion. Her eyes flicked to Sai who looked on in confusion. Remus raised his hands in a gesture of innocence.

"I am… confused," Sai said, "What has happened to make you both so strange?"

Nervousness left Sakura and at the moment she couldn't find Sai's lack of understanding anything but endearing. She smiled at him.

"It's nothing, Sai," She said, he smiled back at her and her stomach did a small flip-flop, "Is there anything else I should heal before we get going? Anything that's making you at all uncomfortable?"

Sai shook his head, "No, the rest can wait," He paused, "Thank you;_ even though you were the one to inflict these wounds, hag."_

_"You were asking for it," _Sakura shot at him with a huff as she turned back towards the open path into Diagon Alley.

_"I am still confused about-"_

_"Just shut up, Sai,"_ Sakura said sighing.

_"In the interest of not being hit again, I believe I will do that," _He said, falling in step with her as Remus took the lead and started chattering away about this and that as they walked down the busy street. People wore very strange clothing and in her jeans and red top, and Sai's white collared shirt and black pants she felt very out of place amongst the brightly colored robes. The gentle hum of chakra surged all around them, not one of the people masking their chakra. It was certainly as they were told though; none of these people had nearly the amount of chakra necessary to perform the simplest genjutsu or ninjutsu. Had they the drive that Lee did, perhaps they could learn a significant amount of taijutsu to make up for it, but from how the robes hung from these people's forms, it seemed that none of them had the physical fitness that would allow them even that. Sakura felt rather than saw Sai draw a bit closer to her side, the large crowd making him uncomfortable. The elderly Headmaster had seemed to have a much greater amount of chakra, likely due to years of performing magic, but still the growth was stunted, likely due to the use of their wands which makes growth more unnecessary. It was difficult to hear over the noise, but Remus' distinct voice, close in front of them, was clearly audible.

"Just up here is Olivader's," He said pointing to a shop on the corner, "That's where we'll be getting you your wands."

They stepped into the shop, and Sai visibly relaxed as the door shut behind them, leaving them in the quiet, empty little shop. There was a small counter on the other side of the room and to the right there were several long shelves with boxes sticking out everywhere.

"Olivander?" Remus called to the back.

"Yes, yes, I've been expecting you," The mystical voice came from off to their right as a man emerged from the stacks, white hair spiking out in all directions. Sakura and Sai started at not having sensed his approach. They exchanged a suspicious glance, before watching the man warily. The man, Olivander, fixed both of them with an oddly contemplative look before smiling at them brightly.

"Ah, I see now," He said, "I knew there would be an odd pair coming in my shop sometime but now I know exactly… How delightful."

Before either of them could respond the man pulled out a stick and waved it. Suddenly all sorts of measuring instruments were flying around Sakura, and she was being tugged this way and that. She futilely and rather ungracefully swatted at the darting objects, and a chuckle came from behind her. Sai was suddenly at her side hand reaching for a hidden kunai, face serious but just as he did the flying things finally let her be and Sakura turned to fix a glare at Remus, who continued to laugh shamelessly at her discomfort. With a huff she turned back around to find the man had disappeared. Sakura felt Sai tense at her side as the man came out from behind another shelf with a box in his hand. He smiled and lifted the lid.

"Ten inches, redwood, unicorn hair core, very swishy," He said holding out a stick not unlike the one he had used on her before, "Give it a wave!"

Sakura examined the object carefully as she picked it up out of the box. It did not have any concentration of chakra in it but as she held it, it almost felt as if it became an extension of herself, an extra pathway for her chakra, an open ended one. It felt a bit awkward, as if the pathway were too wide and did not match up with her chakra paths. Sakura frowned at the strange feeling and pointed it towards where it would do little damage should something go wrong, giving it a small flick while focusing chakra through it. The wood wall splintered and Sakura jumped back a bit, bumping into Sai who had been also transfixed on the effect of waving the wand and did not side-step her.

"Uh, no, no," Olivander snatched the wand from her and disappeared among the stacks again.

"That was… incredible," Sakura said, inspecting the damage done. It was as if she had punched it with a small bit of chakra behind the blow.

_"That thing molded your chakra into a force," _Sai observed, _"Without any hand signs, it shaped your chakra. How interesting."_

_"That must be how they can perform such feats with such little chakra."_

It took two seconds of silence for Sakura to realize that neither of them had moved and her back was pressed firmly into his chest. She felt Sai's heartbeat, normal as ever, even as her face quickly heated. Sakura didn't know what to do. Sai wasn't moving, which meant he wasn't uncomfortable, or maybe he didn't want to acknowledge that they were too close and hadn't moved yet so he won't move. Should she stay still? Sakura let out a small 'eep' when Sai's hands came to her shoulders and turned her towards the wizard returning with another box, then so quickly that she nearly stumbled, he was standing next to Remus, who was looking quite decidedly anywhere but at them.

He just… in a flash quite basically pushed her away and went as far away as possible. Suddenly Sakura saw red.

Sai had immediately been suspicious of the strange old wizard who seemed to appear and disappear and know far more than he ought, a feeling that he saw was mutual with his teammate. Sai was… glad that she was his teammate on this mission. She was levelheaded and rational – when it came to missions at least – even in the pursuit of Sasuke, much unlike Naruto. He could certainly tolerate her for this lengthy mission. She was also familiar, which he liked. She was predictable, as well. He knew she was going to hit him for making that comment about her time of the month, but he did it anyways because it was fun to see the flush of anger come to her cheeks and the burning in her eyes just before she exacted her vengeance.

Call him a masochist if you will.

He also knew that she would always be angry whenever he called her 'hag' or 'ugly' (he was beginning to think that book that told him women like to hear the opposite of what you think had lied to him, but no matter) and again, he still did it. When he did that she would refrain from punching him, but still have that flash of anger he enjoyed to get out of her.

She was such a flamboyantly expressive person and it fascinated him. Emotions were confusing and annoying and complicated, but they are always so interesting to see in a person.

There were still many things he did not understand and believed he never would understand; such as when he had seen Olivander returning with a second wand and he turned Sakura towards him to alert her to his presence and then stepped out of the way and she… snatched the wand and turned on him, anger flashing in her eyes as she flicked it in his direction.

Emotions were so puzzling.

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Tell me what you think XD


	3. Chapter Two

Well hello everybody! That took longer than I thought. Thank you for all your awesome reviews, they really make my day. Well I oughta get on with it XD so… enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or Harry Potter.

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Rain

Chapter Two

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For the rest of the trip from store to store through Diagon Alley Sakura seemed grimly pleased with herself for the harm she had inflicted upon Sai. After she had calmed down from outright anger into quiet simmering she thought that he probably wasn't getting as far away from her as possible because he had distaste for her and being close to her but because he was simply getting out of the way because Olivander had returned with another wand. She was still mad, though.

Sakura fingered the piece of wood in her hand experimentally flicking it in certain ways and muttering incantations according to the book that sat open in her lap. It was cherry wood eleven inches with a dragon heartstring core, very sturdy, she was told. A stray jinx or two may have gone a bit close to hitting Sai who sat opposite of her in the train compartment watching her nervously, but nothing he couldn't dodge if needed. Sai's wand was white wood eleven inches with a basilisk scale core, also sturdy. One thing that Sakura discovered from the books was that this mission was going to be a cakewalk. The spells were bright and slow, easily recognized and dodged. Any genin that could dodge a shuriken could easily get out of the way of one of these things. Not to mention the words necessary to invoke the spell. Sakura read something on silent casting, which would be more difficult to see coming, but still easily avoided.

Wizards may be fine and well against each other, but against a shinobi they were a bit more than screwed.

"Hag," Sai said, breaking her concentration from a spell, – or maybe he didn't and she just wanted to "accidentally" fling a hex at him which he deftly dodged – and nodded towards the compartment door on the other side of which were three teens who were arguing in muffled tones and glancing at Sai and Sakura from time to time. They were clearly discussing whether or not they should join the two of them in the compartment or look for another one. Before they could make a decision out in the hall Sakura got to her feet and walked over to the door, sliding it open making the three jump back a step, and put on her best winning smile.

"You may join us if you like," She said moving out of the way and gesturing into the compartment. Two of the three looked cautiously inside first, looking at Sai particularly who just smiled and gave a small wave, but the third bounded happily inside and plopped down in the seat that Sakura had recently occupied.

"See, mate?" The cheery red head said as the other two walked in, "Told you they wouldn't mind."

"Really, Ronald," the only female of the group said, he curly brown locks bouncing as she placed her hands on her hips, "You just took her seat."

Sakura looked at the red headed boy who took on a sheepish look and smile.

"That's alright," She said and went to sit down in the vacant space next to Sai, "I'll sit here."

The brown haired girl took a seat next to the red head, in the middle of the row and the last of the three sat beside her and just looked out the window vacantly. The boy had messy black hair and green eyes. His skin was fairly pale and he wore round glasses – cue shiver at the thought of Kabuto that the glasses bring forth. He seemed to be pouting just a bit.

Sakura and Sai exchanged a look. That was the boy.

"Aw, chin up Harry," The red head, Ronald, said, "So you're not a prefect, lucky you; the less responsibility the better. You have more important things to worry about."

"Now I know we promised to sit with you a little while but…" The brown haired girl glanced nervously at her watch.

"Don't be late, go to the prefect carriage," Harry said turning to flash them a small smile.

The girl stood up and grabbed the red head's arm, beginning to slide the carriage door open.

"Come on we should have been there six minutes and twenty-four seconds ago," She said as Ronald awkwardly waved at Harry with the arm the girl was dragging him by as the disappeared into the hall the compartment door clicking shut behind them.

The boy turned sullen as they left and looked back to the window, casting a suspicious glance at Sai and Sakura every once in a while. Paranoia was good to a point. In a shinobi's line of work it could save someone's life. The boy seemed to finally get that Sakura and Sai were studying him and suddenly the air turned awkward.

"Um…" The boy began nervously, "I uh… I've never seen you around school before, but you look a bit old to be first years. Um… are you… transfer students? … Or something…"

"Yes," Sai spoke first, "We come from Japan, and we went to the Kyoto Academy of Magic. We are transferring for better opportunities for certain classes that aren't offered there. My name is Sai."

"I'm Sakura," the pinkette smiled brightly and held out her hand to the nervous boy sitting across from them. He seemed to lighten a little bit and took her hand firmly in his, shaking it before withdrawing.

"Harry. Harry Potter," The boy said, "But I suppose you might have already known that."

"We heard the one boy say your name, Harry," Sai said, "But even from so far away we have heard the name Harry Potter, but not much of it."

"We've also heard that… things are dangerous in wizarding England nowadays…" Sakura said feigning ignorance and fear, "There are rumors of a dark wizard gathering power… the return of Voldemort."

"You're not afraid to say his name?" Harry asked, "Most people I meet are. Although living so far away from it all, you must not know much about that – and I'm sorry but is that your natural hair color?"

Sakura paused and stared a moment at the abrupt change in topic before she gave a small laugh and nodded.

"Yes, it is," She said.

"It's… pretty," Harry said with a smile.

Sai didn't know exactly what happened but suddenly he was angry. Schooling his expression he inched closer to Sakura. The pinkette noticed immediately the change in his aura and his movement towards her and pondered it for a moment. Could he be being… protective of her? That's ridiculous, and the kid had just complimented her hair.

"Well, thank you," Sakura said, suddenly self-conscious. She reached up and patted down her hair, straightening nonexistent imperfections.

Sai pondered his own reaction to the compliment. It was a harmless comment, and did not anger Sakura, in fact she seemed flattered. Why the sudden flash of… what? It wasn't anger exactly he realized. Was there a word for the strange feeling? It was… sort of frustration and… irritation… and… something else he couldn't place that all wrapped into one emotion. So strange. Sai was broken from his thoughts as he felt the presence of light footsteps walking down the hallway towards the compartment.

He turned his head to the door as it slid open to reveal a girl. She had long blonde hair and her smoky blue eyes had a distant look to them. She looked around the compartment and smiled at each of them before speaking in a light voice.

"Is it alright if I sit here?" She asked, "All the other compartments are full and the wack-spurts led me here."

Sakura and Sai smiled at her while Harry looked at her nervously, and a bit like she'd grown a third head.

"Of course," Sai said and gestured to the seat opposite the two shinobi, next to Harry.

"Oh, good," She said and walked over next to Harry and sat down, "The wack-spurts are never wrong, you know. My name is Luna Lovegood, you must be new students. The snuffs are buzzing around you like crazy, they're very curious about new people."

Harry looked distinctly uncomfortable and Sai and Sakura exchanged a look wondering just how right this girls head was screwed on.

"Ah… yes," Sakura said amiably, "My name is Sakura Haruno and this is Sai…"

"Hatake," Sai quickly supplied their agreed upon alias with a smile, "Sai Hatake."

Luna blinked in response fixing Sai with an odd look before shrugging it off with a smile.

"Good to meet you both," She said and turned to the increasingly uneasy boy at her side, "And you're Harry, right? I always have wanted to meet you, I'm only a year below you but houses are so separated."

Harry gave her a small smile but offered no words.

Unperturbed by the miniscule response Luna pulled out a magazine from a bag she carried on her shoulder labeled the "Quibbler" and began to read it… upside-down.

A small croak sounded from the doorway and the group just realized that the door had been left open.

"Trevor?" Harry said, looking at the bulbous amphibian that sat quite comfortably in the doorway.

"Has anyone seen-?" A frantic voice sounded from the hallway, "Trevor!"

A nervous looking slightly chubby boy – note to self call him pleasantly plump for fear of Chouji-esque response at being called chubby – with short brown hair scooped up the toad and looked into the compartment sheepishly.

"Um… sorry – oh, Harry!" The boy seemed to recognize Harry and smiled, walking into the compartment and taking a seat right next to Sakura – Too Close, Inner Sakura screamed, and Sakura inched towards Sai – "How was your summer?"

"The usual," Harry said with a grimace, "How about yours, Neville?"

"Good!" He said happily, "My parents… they're finally showing signs of coming around, isn't that great?"

"That's wonderful, Neville," Harry said genuinely.

The boy sat with his toad firmly under one hand and the other hand curled around a potted plant that looked something like a cactus. The boy seemed to just notice that he was sitting next to two unfamiliar people and his face turned red.

"Oh!" He said, "Um… Hi, I'm Neville, I don't think I've seen either of you around before."

"Sakura Haruno," Sakura said, smiling.

"Sai Hatake," Sai said with a nod towards the boy.

"Um… great to meet you."

Uncomfortable silence followed, the only ones seemingly unaffected was the blonde happily reading her upside-down magazine and Sai, content to stare at the ceiling. Neville poked at his toad in his lap and Harry slid further toward the window away from the strange girl. Sakura sighed and pulled her legs up onto the seat with her, hugging her knees to her chest.

She missed home already, she realized. Meeting new people was all well and good but Sakura had always liked familiarity. Sakura glanced at Sai who stared blankly at the ceiling of the compartment and couldn't help but smile. Sai really did try – though she was beginning to believe more and more that some of his "unsuccessful" attempts at grasping emotion are things that he is doing quite on purpose – and could be very sweet. A familiar face in this strange place was a great thing to see and it brought her a sense of comfort just looking at him; her own little slice of home.

Sakura was staring at him. She had now actually been staring at him for a total of fourteen minutes and thirty-two seconds. Sai stared at the ceiling seemingly oblivious to her attention but inside he was a whir of emotions. It was awkward he decided at first which is why he did not let her know that he knew she was staring, otherwise it would become even more awkward and she would look away; which was something he decided he didn't want if this was the warm feeling he got when she did.

And suddenly everyone was covered in purple dust.

* * *

Sakura decided that trains were the second thing she did not like about this place. After the contraption started moving Sakura's stomach began to lurch. She smiled wryly; she could heal a dying man with blood all over, his insides clearly visible, but she got sick from riding a train. Silence in the compartment had ended after Neville's plant had basically exploded. They chatted amiably for a while and Sakura and Sai fed them lies about their lives when the conversation topic turned to them. They weaved tales they knew would spurn sympathy, kinship, and hopefully – as was their first task in their mission – friendship as well. Sakura spoke of a single muggle mother – poor dear – and Sai would evade the topic of his parents giving the illusion of tragedy.

Sai's eyes had glazed over and he became silent for a while after that and Sakura realized that there was no deceit there. Sai must have never known his parents, being recruited into Root. It was likely that he was orphaned and Danzou snatched him up. Sakura had learned much through her years as the Hokage's apprentice, and she knew that Danzou was not a good man. He was not above anything. The thought of the man and what other atrocities he has committed other than the creation of Root made her stomach churn even faster than it had before.

When the train lurched to a stop Sakura sent her thanks to kami before she gathered her bag from the compartment above their cabin, eager to be off the train. She tossed Sai his bag as well grabbing his wrist before he could mutter a word of protest and dragged him off the train. All the students had begun pooling off of the train and crowding the station, it was late at night – darkness having falling a little less than an hour ago. Breathing in fresh air and settling her errant stomach Sakura smiled as the fresh smell of nature and the lake filled her senses. She turned to find Sai looking at her and she felt her stomach churn again, but in a different way.

A good way.

Sakura blushed deep red.

Sai smiled.

Out of the corner of her eyes her needed distraction came as their three new friends came walking off of the train. Harry was looking around, likely trying to spot his missing friends. Sakura brushed past Sai and walked over to them smiling brightly.

Sai stayed where he had stood for a moment longer, breathing in deeply, wondering what it was about that breath after just getting off the train that had made Sakura looked so peaceful and content with the world. He smelled trees, the smoke from the train, and the lake. It was nice he supposed, but whatever comfort it was supposed to bring him like it had Sakura was squashed by nervousness as people bustled around him. He turned and spotted Sakura's bright hair by the train, talking to their charge and moved deftly through the crowd that had begun to flow around them, taking a place close by her side.

Standing near _her_ was something he found he didn't mind – and shouldn't should he wish to avoid bodily harm.

"A'righ!" A loud booming voice came over the crowd. Sakura and Sai turned to see a very large man with a dark bushy beard and hair holding a lantern, "Firs' years come wi' me to the boats."

Sakura and Sai recognized the man from the description given by Dumbledore as the one they were supposed to go with up to the school.

"Harry," Sakura said, tapping the boys should as he turned to walk towards where other students were loading onto carriages being pulled by strange skeletal horses, "We were told to go with the first years, since we're new and all, so we'll see you there?"

"Oh, alright," Harry seemed a bit dejected that they were leaving him with Neville and Luna but he smiled anyways, "Yeah, sure."

With that he turned and disappeared into the crowd with the two odd students. He heard him happily yell as they went their own way towards Hagrid.

"Ron! Hermione!"

Sakura and Sai went straight up to the giant who was ushering the short little first years towards the lake. The man positively beamed.

"Well there, yeh must be the transfer students" – a poorly concealed wink let them know that he was in on everything and did indeed know who they were – "Grea' teh meet ya. M'names Rubeus Hagrid. Yeh must be Sai and Sakerah."

He dragged out her name, mispronouncing it but she didn't have the heart to correct him as he smiled brightly at his accomplishment.

"C'mon then, to the boats," He turned and led them all down to the docks where he loaded them all on the boats, each seeming to push off from the dock on its own. Finally he got in the last one and Sai and Sakura joined him along with three other first years. The boat pushed ahead faster than the others to take the lead.

"And tha'" He said gesturing upwards, smile threatening to spill over the limits of his face, "Be 'ogwarts."

Oohs and ahhs were heard from the first years and Sakura looked up to find herself muttering the same. The castle seemed ancient but there it stood, sturdy as can be. It was truly a breathtaking sight. Sai, too, seemed transfixed upon the castles ever growing stone walls.

It seemed there was only one person who wasn't staring at the castle. Sakura's eyes caught sight of a young boy, blonde hair shining in the moonlight, staring into the dark depths of the lake.

"Did you see that?" He pointed into the lake and the other first years all scrambled to his side of the boat. Sakura reacted quickly as the boat shifted in weight and the blonde boy started to tumble forward. She caught him by the back of the shirt, his nose just touching the water. Sakura saw something move in the water just beneath him. He squealed as she hauled him back up into the boat. The boy, terrified, latched onto Sakura as Hagrid knelt down worriedly and patted the boys back.

"Thank yeh, miss," He said, gratitude flooding his tone.

That was very easy earning his respect.

"I didn't see anything," the first year girl in the boat huffed.

"Yeah, me neither," The boy grumbled, shooting an irritated look at the scared blonde boy.

Sakura held the boy just a little bit closer and Sai shot them a glare that nearly made the two wet themselves. Sakura started at his reaction but didn't question as he slid an inch closer to her on the bench and leaned back, looking up at the stars.

* * *

The blonde haired first year was now Sakura's biggest fan. When the boy finally looked up to thank her she caught sight of brilliant blue eyes and nearly cried at his resemblance to Naruto. The kid blushed when she smiled at him, waving it off, and pulled away from her embrace looking at his feet.

When they got off of the boats the boy stuck close to her, grasping onto her robe and looking very nervous. Sakura – kind nurturing girl that she was – didn't complain and allowed him to stay attached to her. They now walked in the hallways of the magnificent castle after Hagrid handed them off to a tall stern-looking woman who introduced herself as Professor Minerva McGonagall. She walked brusquely, the first years with their short legs rushing to keep up with her. They walked up a set of steps and came to a stop before large doors on the other side of which muffled chattering could be heard.

"Now," The woman spoke up, "When we walk through those doors you are to calmly follow me to the dais where I will then call each of your names. You shall come up as I call you and the sorting hat will be placed on your head. You will then be sorted into one of four houses. The houses are Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin" – she nearly spat the last name – "While you are here your house shall be your family…"

Sakura and Sai tuned her out as she began to talk about houses, family, and inter-house unity. The boy at her side clenched tighter at her robes and she patted his head. The boy was short, even for his young age but she also figured he could be no younger than ten. Even with her small stature she towered a good foot and a half over him.

Sakura turned her attention back to the woman, who pursed her lips, seeming to just now realize that most people had not been listening for a good portion of her speech. She turned sharply and opened the doors and sound poured over everyone. Sakura and Sai kept to the back, minding the stares they were receiving, as the students all filed into the great hall. The blonde boy nervously kept to her side as they walked up and gathered around the dais where a lone stool sat with a battered old hat on top of it. Sai scoped out the hall, eyes lingering on the table decked in green and lined with people who looked not particularly friendly before moving to settle on Harry who sat with the two that they had first seen on the train. He had heard him say the names Ron and Hermione.

Professor McGonagall pulled out a scroll and read the first name.

"Dianna Beck."

The girl walked up to the stool eagerly, seeming to know what was going to happen. McGonagall picked up the hat and the girl sat down on the stool. The hat was placed on her head and she clasped her hands together, smiling brightly.

Suddenly the hat appeared to have a face and it opened its mouth, startling some of the first years.

"Ravenclaw!"

It continued this way until there were only a few students left. Sakura and Sai noticed that neither of their names had been called even though they had passed the H's.

"Jacob, Sheffield."

The boy at her side jumped to attention and Sakura gave him a gentle pat on the head for encouragement before pushing him towards the stool. He nervously slid onto the seat and the hat was placed on his head. A few moments of silence passed before the hat yelled.

"Hufflepuff!"

Sakura sighed; at least the Hufflepuffs all seemed nice.

The boy passed by her as he went over to his own table, a relieved look on his face. She smiled at him and watched as the Hufflepuffs welcomed him with open arms.

The last few students were sorted and Sakura and Sai were the only two standing in front of the students and teachers.

"Now, then," McGonagall spoke loudly over the whispers overtaking the hall, "We have two new fifth years joining us. They have transferred here from the Kyoto Academy of Magic in Japan. I expect you all to be kind to them both and welcome them warmly."

Applause followed, which seemed only to be done because it was the appropriate thing to do.

"Well, then," the witch said, "Sai Hatake, shall you go first?"

Sai stepped up to the stool and sat down knowing what the hat would say before it was even placed on his head. For appearance's sake they were to be 'sorted', but the hat was strictly instructed to place them in Gryffindor. The hat, however, decided a chat was due first.

_So then, you're one of those shinobi that are here to protect the school. Good, you've the makings of s Gryffindor in you, a fine guardian. She's in your hands._

"Gryffindor!" The hat yelled.

Puzzled by the invasion of his mind Sai shot a glance at Sakura before walking over to the Gryffindor table where he was waved over by Harry.

"Sakura Haruno."

Sakura went and sat on the stool and the hat was placed on her head. She refrained from reacting when she heard its voice in her head.

_And you're the other one then. Ambitious little thing, aren't you?_

Sakura decided that she did not like the hat.

_Haha and a bit of a spitfire, I see. You're smart too, but cunning even though your battle technique wouldn't make you out to be. I'd love to put you where I want but I've got my instructions so better be-_

"Gryffindor!"

Sakura tore the hat off herself with a huff and put it not so gently on the stool before she went to the Gryffindor table and sat next to Sai who shot her a concerned look.

"Doesn't matter," She mumbled as others looked at her strangely. Whispers gained volume until Dumbledore rose from his place at the high table and addressed the students. He welcomed them and spoke of the forbidden forest that they caught sight of as they made their way to the castle and of items that were prohibited on school grounds – his eyes twinkling at the mention of some. Sakura refocused on his words as he introduced their enemy.

"The position of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher" – queue dark look from an equally dark man that would put and Uchiha to shame – "Will be filled by Professor Umbridge, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Magic-"

"Hem, hem.

The woman in pink – dear god she was an insult to her hair color – stood, eerily sweet smile on her face. The woman with her curly, poofed out hair and large frame looked very much like a toad.

"Thank you for that fine introduction Headmaster-"

Sakura was going to enjoy thoroughly destroying this woman.

* * *

Soon enough the woman stopped talking – their ears safe from her shrilly, arrogant voice for now – and Dumbledore finished his speech, again welcoming the 'exchange students'. Food then suddenly flooded the tables and Sakura schooled her expression, trying not to show her shock. She was supposed to be a witch and know all about this.

"Oh hey, Sakuwa," Ron Weasly said through a mouthful of food, "'Mione here'sh a muh'le-born 'oo."

"Well I don't exactly know if I'm…" Sakura placed an expression of false sadness, "I could be half-blood… how did you know that?"

"Harry told me," He said, thankfully after he had swallowed.

Harry looked down at his plate, poking at his food.

Sakura and Sai looked around, seeing nothing they recognized in the immediate vicinity. As soon as the though passed their minds a bowl of ramen appeared before them. Sakura smiled and thought of Naruto as she ladled some into her own bowl.

"So Sakura, Sai," The brown haired girl, Hermione, said, "What classes are you taking?"

"Oh, well we're taking the regular classes along with Arithmancy and Ancient Runes," Sakura said, thinking of the list of classes she had and books she had bought.

Hermione immediately brightened.

"That's brilliant!" She said, "Maybe we'll be in the same class."

"Maybe," – _yes we will, you're Harry Potter's best friend, it's our job to protect you as well – _"I really hope Sai and I don't get separated either," Sakura said honestly, "It's a bit scary being here in a new place."

"So you two have been friends a while?" Harry asked, "Not just that you were transferring together?"

"Oh yes," Sai said, "Sakura-_chan_ and I are very good friends for a long time now."

Sakura nearly rolled her eyes.

Nearly.

But she settled for smiling softly at the boy who now found himself on the end of endless questions from the trio of friends.

"So…" Ron began. Sakura new that tone. That was the tone that Naruto spoke in when he was about to say something tactless, or Sai when he was going to say something insulting but not really mean it as insulting – or did he? – or when Ino was going to ask an question that would make Sakura turn red, "Are you two, ya know… together?"

Not so bad then, not as bad as she was expecting – wait.

"No!" Sakura's voice took on a high pitch and she repeated the word over and over so that they would never forget it.

She missed the flash of hurt that crossed Sai's features.

"Oh, ok," Ron seemed satisfied for now and started talking again of random things until Dumbledore stood and a hush fell upon the hall. He announced that it was time to turn in and for the prefects to direct the first years to their houses.

"Alright!" Ron stood up and yelled out over the table standing up and punching a fist in the air – dear god… Gai… Lee… image… make it go away! - , "First years follow me!"

The Gryffindor first years stood and followed him, the first ones out of the Great Hall. Harry and Hermione follow after and Sakura and Sai stick close to them as students begin pouring into the halls. They all branch off in four different directions and Sakura and Sai follow their charges and the rest of the Gryffindors up several flights of stairs until they come to a stop just at a portrait of a rather large lady.

"Alright, remember the password for the year, its Mimbulus Mimbletonia."

The portrait of the fat lady swung open and the excited first years scrambled inside followed by the much calmer older students. Sai scanned the hall quickly before he was the last to enter the room following behind Sakura. The portrait closed shut behind them and he took in the warm common room that they had walked into. People had already plopped down on a couch and in chairs or yawned dramatically and headed upstairs. Ron grabbed the attention of the first years in the room.

"Alright, girls dorms over there," pointing off to a set of stairs the left, "Boys over there," pointing to the same on the right, "Your names should be on plaques outside the door so find your room and your trunks should be waiting there. Curfew is eight, just as a reminder, stay out of the halls past then."

Ron, though seemingly and idiot, looked like he was fitting into the position of prefect rather well. Sai noticed Harry skulking off towards the boys dorms and after giving a nod to Sakura followed after him.

"Come on, Sakura," Hermione said, "Let's go get settled in."

Sakura had a room with Hermione, of course, and Sai had a room with Harry and Ron, also a given. They were both lucky, as they slipped out of their rooms later after everyone had fallen asleep that their roommates seemed to be heavy sleepers. They met down in the common room, cloaks covering their forms and hoods up. Sakura caught sight of Sai's ANBU mask and found one of her own being shoved into her hands. She turned it over tracing the markings, mask seeming to grin wickedly at her. She looked up to see Sai with the mask on and put on her own.

They nodded to each other and Sai pulled out a scroll, whipping it open sat on the ground pulling out a brush. After a series of quick strokes and a hand sign several mice poured out of the page and hurried up the stairs to the dorms or hid in corners of the common room. Again Sai painted on the scroll and this time a lion emerged. Sai rolled up the scroll and stood. After another nod they slipped out of the common room to scout their territory, splitting up, ink lion following Sai one way, and Sakura leaping up to the banister of the stairs and preparing to jump down to the next landing.

Their mission had begun.

* * *

The Dark Lord was eager, Severus noted. He was nearly giddy in fact – if such a word could be used to describe him. And to be called to a meeting the night the students arrived? Severus tried to melt into the wall and become as inconspicuous as possible. A happy Dark Lord was never a good thing.

"Tonight, my brothers and sisters we gain a powerful ally!" He yelled, grinning at his captive audience, "This man shall help us tear down the old fool and that wretched boy once and for all!"

Out of the very shadows themselves it seemed that this man appeared, dark hood covering his face. He knelt before Voldemort, a –scaled? – hand to the floor. He rose and tossed back the hood revealing grey hair styled back and one snake-like yellow eye, the other dark and normal looking. He turned to the assembled Death Eaters and Severus nearly cringed at the resemblance to the Dark Lord. Snake scales covered the half of his face that held the snake like eye and those were indeed scales on his hand, the other seemed to be normal though.

"My name is…" he spoke as if in two voices, one lighter and the other darker, deeper, more sinister. He nearly hissed each syllable of his name "Orochimaru."

* * *

dun Dun DUN! Yeah well I kinda pushed Akatsuki to the side in that first chapter, even though I love them to death, so I figure why not make Orochimaru the bad guy. Cause he's a snake dude and all that and yay I'm so original .


End file.
